My husband had a wonderful job that he loved. He was a hard worker, he was praised, and was never in trouble. 10 years of service.
Handbook states....Written warning, Verbal warning, 3 days admin. leave, then termination.
Someone walked by his shop and seen that his eyes were closed and wrote him up for sleeping. He was sent to HR and told the truth. He couldn't account for 10 mins. ( My father was rushed to OSU for major heart complications and was up late the night before with me.) HR told him that with if he would submit to a drug/alcohol test and passed, everything would be fine. He passed. They put him on admin. leave for a week. He was the one that had to call them to see what was going on.
They then came back and said that they had to terminate another employee for sleeping also. BUT.....the other employee had been written up for sleeping. They knew he was and put a video camera in his office to catch him.
Why didn't my husband get the 3 strikes policy?
2006-10-09 11:45:17 · 11 answers · asked by Tracy H 1 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
I will also add that the day that they fired him, they told him that they wanted his drug test to come back bad. They wanted to use that as the excuse for termination. Not the eyes closed.
2006-10-09 11:58:16 · update #1
Hmm, lots of bad answers here. I assume he was an "at will" employee - meaning he wasn't under an employment contract. If that's the case, he can be terminate for any reason, or no reason. This is well settled law in every jurisdiction. The only caveat to that is that you cant be terminated for unlawful reasons. Those reasons are VERY limited. Termination based on race, sex, and age are some examples. Remember, these "unlawful" reasons are very limited.
Back to your question. They could fire him because they don't like him. They could fire him because there is a better qualified person for the job. They could fire him because he picked his nose on the job. Its their business decision.
But - it appears your husband did do something. Sleeping at work isn't good. You know that. Don't need three strikes. Would they give him another chance if he brought a shotgun to work?
"Wrongful termination" means the company did something unlawful. It doesn't mean "ill-moral termination." We can disagree with their action, but its a free market- you know, capitalism. Companies can do what they need to to remain competitive, including terminating who they want, moral or not....
Go see a lawyer in your state, they will say the same.
2006-10-09 15:45:39 · answer #1 · answered by NCAF33 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The people saying you should sue are fine and dandy, but before you do such a thing, review the applicable rules and laws, as well as all elements of the case with the lawyer.
Odds are you won't get a lawyer to work pro bono, or to agree to get no pay at all if you lose the case, so checking whether you have a good chance of winning before you launch an action may save you quite a wad of cred.
2006-10-09 12:12:19 · answer #2 · answered by Svartalf 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
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2006-10-09 12:49:26 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sounds like you have a good case for wrongful termination.
You have two options. Contact your states department of labor, and inquire as to what constitutes a wrongful termination., and see if you can file a grievance through them, or who do you have to file through.
The other option, is contact an attorney that specializes in wrongful termination. Most attorneys that work in that field, will listen to what you have to say for free, and let you know if you have a case, and what the costs if any are going to be.
2006-10-09 11:59:11 · answer #4 · answered by eman12343567 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sleeping on the job is grounds for dismissal. A company doesn't have to give anyone 3 strikes. It's a right to fire company. I would even go as far as saying that they dont even need a reason to fire anyone.
LOL @ these people talkin about sueing. HE WAS SLEEPING ON THE JOB. Welcome to the real world. Any employee found sleeping by me would have been fired on the spot
2006-10-09 11:54:52 · answer #5 · answered by myothernewname 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Sue for wrong-full termination. he is only human people fall asleep if they are tired even while driving,,Or working at a computer.. Maybe they overworked him.. Maybe he was stressed over a family issue. I would also be writing letters to the editor. explaining how this company treats its faithful employees
2006-10-09 11:57:14 · answer #6 · answered by Shawn S 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Make the company pay up big time for wrongful termination. Drag 'em through the mud.
2006-10-09 11:53:49 · answer #7 · answered by dreamer 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I would call a lawyer. My dad lost his job because the owners were way religious (mormons) and didn't like the fact that he was a smoker. I think he should have called a lawyer, I would!
2006-10-09 11:54:06 · answer #8 · answered by someoneoutthere 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
ask the department of labor. If he didn't get the proper steps for dismissal you may have grounds for unemployment
2006-10-09 11:51:46 · answer #9 · answered by autumnbrookblue 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
That's too bad. HR isn't around to be fair to the employment, they work for the company's benefit.
2006-10-09 11:51:15 · answer #10 · answered by kevbeer2003 4 · 1⤊ 2⤋